Tag Archives: Cats

Another Visit From a Kitten

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My wife and I were on the catio with the cats yesterday afternoon when we heard the sound of a cat crying. I saw that there was a kitten in a tree next door so Rose started talking to the kitten. Upon hearing her voice, the kitten decided get down from the tree and come visit us.

Unlike the last two visits from cats, this one was not tolerated very well by Frankie.

I had to get up and stop Frankie from tearing at the screens because I was worried he might get through and attack the kitten. I guessed this kitten was a male because of Frankie’s attitude compared to the last two cats.

Frankie did settle down a little bit when he knew I didn’t like what he was doing. There was a little hissing and growling but I have heard much worse. Perhaps because he was a kitten he wasn’t much of a threat.

He was indeed a male because the neighbor came out and we talked to her about him. Rose asked if that was her cat and she said “It looks like he will be.” She had already given him a name like Sugar Plum or something with sugar in it. She was calling his name trying to get him to come back to her side of the yard because she didn’t want him to annoy our cats. Like a typical cat he didn’t pay much attention to her but he did eventually listen and went through the hole in the fence back to his side.

It was very good to know that at least one of the stray cats around here is going to have a home.

The End of a Good Thing

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My wife and I were on the catio yesterday evening with the cats who were out there much of the day. Frankie, in particular, always wants to be out there.

We talked about what Frankie was going to do after we return to Florida in just over two weeks to our house with no catio. It will surely feel like trying to put the genie back in the bottle.

Even here, Frankie has become quite the pain. As we were getting ready to go upstairs last night to go to bed, Frankie was at the door crying to go out. This morning at 6 a.m., after eating only half his breakfast, he was again at the door crying to go out.

All we can do is let them enjoy it while it lasts. I quess I will have to start taking Frankie for a walk again when we return.

Another Feline Visitor

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The window by my desk overlooks our back yard. From time to time I will see a white cat walk through our yard. I think I saw the same cat in our yard last winter so we must be part of her territory. Yesterday, Frankie and Floki were on the catio and I went out there to check on them. When I did, I noticed their attention fixed on the white cat.

Nobody was howling or hissing or making a fuss. They were just looking at each other.

The last time this happened with another cat it was also a peaceful encounter. I speculated then that it must have been a female because another male would probably have elicited a different response. If I am right, this white cat is probably also a female. If anyone has a reason to confirm or reject my hypothesis, I would like to hear about it.

Greetings From the Catio

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We went to Parkersburg yesterday morning and when we returned in the afternoon Chris was upstairs, as expected. I thought he would enjoy some catio time so I carried him downstairs, fed them first, and then opened the door to the catio. They were all happy about that.

I need to start making sure that Chris gets to enjoy quality time downstairs with everyone.

They stayed out there for three hours. I finally coaxed them inside with a can of wet food for dinner. Chris then sat between Rose and I on the sofa while we finished watching King Kong, a three hour and twenty minute movie that we started Friday.

When the movie was over I went upstairs while Rose watched a girlie show. After a short time she called me and said to come to the stairs. When I did I saw Chris on the landing. He had come up on his own. I was very happy to see that .

Frankie’s House is Back

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When we came to West Virginia we left Chris and Floki’s Cardboard Cat Homes at our Florida home, but we brought Frankie’s house with us. He really liked lying on top of it so I thought he would enjoy it here too.

I took it apart and when we got to our home here I put it on a shelf, thinking I would put it together as soon as I finished more important things. By the time those important things were done I just forgot about it until my wife reminded me.

I put it together Sunday afternoon while the cats were lounging on the catio and then brought it out there and set it down near Frankie. He gave it a few sniffs and seemed interested for about five seconds.

That is when a stray cat decided to walk past us within inches of the screen. It was like he, or she, owned the place. Frankie immediately ran to the screen and followed while the cat walked around the catio and into the neighbor’s yard. Neither cat made a sound, which surprised me. Perhaps it was a female and the hissing and growling are reserved for males. I don’t know how that works.

In any case, we brought the cats inside shortly after that and then I brought the house into the living room where Chris and Floki took an interest in it.

Later, when I sat down to write this post, Frankie lied down on top of the house, just like he used to do.

I guess there’s no place like home, even if it is cardboard.

My Mom, The Cat Whisperer

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I have always found it somewhat easy to connect with animals. Often when visiting someone they would comment about how their pet likes me, like it was surprising to them. I think it is because I tend to be calm, easygoing, and patient, traits that I inherited from my mother.

My mother is here visiting us and has already made a friend in Frankie.

Years ago, before I started this blog, we had a cat named Flash.

Flash

Flash was very shy and the most skittish cat we ever had. He would come to me for attention sometimes but would never go to my wife. One day, while my mom was visiting, Rose and I went out for some reason and when we returned, Flash was on Mom’s lap. I probably don’t have to mention how jealous Rose was at that sight.

A Cure for Frankie’s Puking

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When we adopted Frankie in February of 2014, we noticed that he puked a lot. To be honest, I don’t remember if we took him to the vet for that specific problem but he has been to the vet a few times since then and I can’t imagine I never mentioned it to the vet. I think we just assumed that he ate too much too fast and then puked it up.

We don’t know Frankie’s backstory. I used to think that he was bulimic but now I think he must have had gastric bypass surgery before we got him and his stomach can’t handle eating too much food at one time.

For a long time I have been feeding our cats a large 5.5 Oz can of cat food in the morning and another later in the afternoon. That is 1.83 Oz per cat and actually a little less because I would often end up with uneaten food on at least one of the plates. It doesn’t seem like that much food but you have to account for the extra that Frankie was eating, usually at the expense of Chris

When I was working full-time I would feed them when I got up in the morning and again when I got home from work. This year I’ve been working almost full time in addition to working at home. Rose has been working from home more and usually Frankie bothers her so much that by 3:00 she feeds them.

That was the routine when we lived in Florida. Very often, but not always, Frankie would quickly finish his food and then he would finish Chris’s for him. A little while later I would have to clean up puke.

When we moved here to West Virginia and I took a two-month hiatus from my job I decided to buy the smaller, 3 ounce cans of cat food and feed them three times a day instead of twice.

I think the smaller portions have worked. Frankie has only puked twice in over two weeks. The first time was probably because I had brought the larger cans with me and used them up the first few days we were here. The second time he puked was after I gave them a large can of tuna as a treat.

I don’t like paying more per ounce for the smaller cans but considering that a lot of it was getting wasted it probably comes out even. Plus, I don’t have to clean up puke as much.